“We don’t pretend to be everything. We have our own identity, which is very clear. We do Hyper Horology, which is a more contemporary and expressive way to interpret fine watchmaking. We want to represent a credible alternative to the classic fine watchmaking brands,” explains Nicola Andreatta, CEO of Roger Dubuis. “We have a hype, a pulse, that permeates everything we do. It’s more colourful, it’s louder, it’s more impactful. It’s all about emotions.”
Andreatta was recently in Malaysia to officially open the watchmaker’s first boutique in the country, located in Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. After the ribbon-cutting ceremony… Well, every Roger Dubuis event evolves into a party of some kind, and this one ended up at Vertigo, the rooftop bar of Banyan Tree Kuala Lumpur. Another highlight from the event was the world premiere of the Roger Dubuis Excalibur Backlight Spin-Stone Monobalancier, one of the brand’s boldest, most colourful expressions yet.
That the Malaysian boutique is the first one in Southeast Asia designed after Roger Dubuis’ latest concept demonstrates the significance of the local market. “I see very much our client in Malaysia as one of the most mature markets of Southeast Asia. And I see how local connoisseurs have been shopping outside of Malaysia as well for the past few years,” Andreatta says. Covid-restricted travel aside, he saw Malaysians seeking out Roger Dubuis boutiques around the world, whether it was in nearby Singapore, or in Geneva, where the manufacture makes its home. “They know what they want, they know watchmaking, they know the complications, and they know what the Geneva Seal stands for,” he states. Roger Dubuis clients are generally drawn to the brand’s combination of brash, extreme styling, as well as a commitment to the highest levels of high horology. The aforementioned Geneva Seal, or Poinçon de Genève, is a certification with extremely high criteria for movement performance and finishing, and is often found on Roger Dubuis calibres.
“It’s very difficult to define our clients. We have very different age groups—from 20 to 60. We have people who appreciate our extravagance, the hype and the hyper life that we project at Roger Dubuis, as well as people who like the brand because of our horological prowess, for the way we’ve been working on the watchmaking world, and what we’ve been inventing for 28 years,” he explains. They have been getting younger, too, with the average age of customers being around 35 years old. “It’s a brand that that talks to younger generations—but also older generations. We have quite an inclusive spirit. Our products are exclusive, in the sense that our watches are expensive because of what they are. It takes years to develop a new calibre and to come up with new innovations. But the clients understand—especially when they come, visit the manufacture, and see how we do things.”
The brand experience does not just end at the watch, and this is why clients keep coming back. “We call our clientele a tribe. Because normally when clients come to Roger Dubuis, they really live the brand. They become friends. There is an experiential side to what we do, which goes beyond the watchmaking,” Andreatta says. “That’s why with every boutique we tend to have a kind of journey, so that the client discovers the brand. These are in a way places where we celebrate the hyper life, and we discover the brand together with our clientele.”
The boutique in Kuala Lumpur is much more than just a retail space and is especially important to communicate the values of Roger Dubuis. The new look is futuristic and architectural, softening concrete aspects with warm woods. Andreatta felt this rejuvenated boutique concept was essential to reflect the brand’s evolving design sensibilities. “The design of everything has been thought in a very specific way. And I think luxury is all about details, is about taking care of every single one,” he says. The centrepiece of the boutique is a colourfully lit sculpture that incorporates the brand signature, executed by local artist Jun Ong.
Roger Dubuis remains a small manufacture, in the scheme of things, with an annual production not officially stated but generally accepted to be only a few thousand pieces per year. “That’s the way it should be. I’m not going to increase quantities. I don’t want to make more watches because I’m afraid I’m going to dilute the craftsmanship, the expertise,” Andreatta says. “This is what we want to continue to do, and we are true to our DNA. That is what Roger said at the very beginning of the history of the brand, and this is the way we want to continue developing it. Never looking back, always thinking about the future. For us, vintage is a word that doesn’t exist. It cannot exist with only 28 years of history. And we keep exploring, we keep inventing, we test new materials, and we want to develop new calibres. There is this hype that you can feel when you come to Roger Dubuis, which personally I didn’t find in many other brands.”